THE MINIMALIST; The Salty With the Sweet

By Mark Bittman

Published: August 23, 2006

WHEREVER limes grow -- just about anyplace that has year-round warmth and sufficient water -- limeade is a popular drink. This isn't true for Florida or the American Southwest, but that just goes to show how immature our culinary traditions are.

What surprises travelers to the Middle East, India or Thailand is that limeade is often served salty. Straight lime juice is too sour for many people, so sugar is always added, but the addition of salt as well makes the drink savory. The recipe here can be used for lemonade as well.

To extract as much flavor from the limes as possible, I begin by making what amounts to a lime tea: after squeezing the juice from the fruit I steep the rinds, with their pulp, in hot water to cover. I then combine this infusion with the lime juice. The proportions of water to lime juice, sugar and salt are completely a matter of taste, so adjust the recipe as you like.

The hedge here is a simple syrup. Since sugar won't really dissolve in cold drinks, and since superfine sugar is not found in every household, and since people like drinks of varying sweetness, mixing sugar and water beforehand allows everyone to sweeten his own drink as he likes. This syrup keeps indefinitely, and is as useful for iced coffee and tea as it is here.

Much has been made of juicing limes and lemons: we are told to roll them on the counter to break the cells, to warm them gently in a microwave or to cut them in thirds longitudinally -- though why, I can't imagine.

It's nonsense. Get yourself a reamer or a juicer or a strong grip, and get as much juice out of the fruit as you can. Some limes contain a lot more than others, so I can't tell you how many you need to make a cup. It's probably a dozen or so. The good news is that this is the season for limes, and they should be cheap.

1. In a small saucepan combine sugar with 1 cup water, and place over medium heat; cook, stirring, until sugar dissolves.
2. In another pan bring 6 cups water to a boil; remove from heat, and add rinds and pulp. Cover, let steep for 10 minutes and then strain.
3. Combine strained liquid in a pitcher with lime or lemon juice and salt. Refrigerate until ready to serve. (Fruit mixture and sugar syrup can be refrigerated separately for a couple of days, until needed.) Add syrup to taste, and serve over ice.
Yield: 6 to 8 servings.